Third Grave Dead Ahead: Number 3 in series (Charley Davidson, #3)

by Darynda Jones

Charley Davidson sees dead people. As grim reaper extraordinaire it's her job to convince them to 'go into the light'. But when these very dead people have died under less than ideal circumstances (i.e. murder), Charlie dons her Private Investigator hat to solve the crime.

• ISBN10: 0749956143
• ISBN13: 9780749956141
• Publish Date: 31 January 2012
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
• Imprint: Piatkus Books
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[MurderByDeath]

What a great book. I started it and couldn't put it down until it was finished. I was hesitant about the premise - Charley can't go to sleep. I was afraid it would be painful to read - but that wasn't the case in the slightest. I found myself holding my breath during parts of the story, and although there were places where the reading of the story was difficult - truly painful for the characters at times - the humour never lets up and I love Charley's sense of humour. The comedic banter she exchanges with many of the characters - especially her BF Cookie, makes me laugh out loud.

I truly hope I do not have to wait another year for the fourth one. I'll be re-reading the three I have in the meantime.

[kimbacaffeinate]

The story picks up a few weeks from where the last novel left off. We discover that our protagonist; the insatiable, snarky, loyal, butt- kicking, fearless, Charley Davidson, hasn’t slept in almost two weeks. Why? Because every time she closes her eyes the smoking hot, son of Satan, Reyes Farrow enters her dreams; and he is mad. In the last novel, she bound Reyes to his human form and he wants to be released. Charley is confused because he keeps coming to her and Reyes tells her she is summoning him. This freaks Charley out, but she is soon on a case for a missing woman. The husband seeks her help in finding his wife and he stinks, like guilt, and Charley is convinced he killed her. When she discovers, the wife is still alive, the tale twists and turns with danger. While on the case, she is carjacked and discovers Reyes has escaped from prison. While forcing her to drive him to friends, he explains that the very man he was convicted of killing is alive. He asks Charley to help investigate. She desperately wants to trust Reyes, but he’s the son of Satan. As she searches for Reye’s father, her questions and investigation suddenly put her in danger. She is questioned by the police, and fears for the safety of her friends. As if all of this isn’t enough she is dealing with a mafia biker gang and a father who wants her to retire and become a plumber. The mysterious email sender looking for the grim reaper appears. A strange ghost child with a big old knife is following Charley. Souls need to pass through her and the banter between Charley and her friend/assistant Cookie is totally hilarious. In my mind Cookie reminds me of actress Anne Potts in her role as, Mary Jo on Designing Women. Reyes and Charley’s inability to trust each other, while dancing around mega feelings,(that neither will admit too) puts them both in danger. We get to see the human side of Reyes and quite frankly; son of Satan or not I am smitten.
you can see the full review on my blog: http://kimbathecaffeinatedbookreviewer.blogspot.com/2012/02/third-grave-dead-ahead-charley-davidson.html

[Cocktails and Books]

When we last were with Charley, she had just tied Reyes to his human body after saving him from a bunch (ok hundreds) of demons trying to kill him. She saved the man she loves and sent him back to jail where he'll hopefully be safe, but also managed to piss him off so badly he refuses to speak to her.

As the story starts, three weeks have passed and Charley's not sleeping because when she does a very pissed of Reyes visit her for a book of sexual release while threatening her bodily harm. She figures it's better not to sleep than to deal with him.

So it's with no sleep that Charley goes about investigating a missing wife, one she quickly think has been killed by her slimy doctor husband. But that's not all she's dealing with. She gets carjacked by an escape convict, considered armed and dangerous (hmmm...I wonder who that could be???), she's got Garrett tailing her ass under the guise of protecting her from the escaped carjacker, a biker gang trying to keep her from talking to Rocket and her father bugging her to give up being a PI because it's too dangerous.

Is it any wonder Charley's a little snarky sometimes?

This addition to the Charley Davidson series has got to be my absolute favorite. Charley's wit and sarcasm are at an all time high, but she's more emotionally engaged then I remember her being in the other books. It's refreshing to find a character who can be so greatly disappointed in the men she cherishes in her life and react by thumbing her noise at them while secretly curling up in a ball to die.

I love Charley and cannot wait for the next book.